‘Satanic’ Killer Charged With Murdering Woman He Gave A Ride & Putting Her Head On A Spike
[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
This case has been one of the most shocking stories, even since it began back in July 2021, when a teenager found a human skull on a spike in the Greenbelt River Trail Park near Mitchell, Iowa. The skull was identified as female, but little else was known for months.
That all changed in February 2022. The family of Angela Bradbury reported her missing, telling the Cerro Gordo County Sheriff’s Office they hadn’t heard from her since April 2021. The Sheriff’s Office explained in a public post that the family “provided DNA samples and dental records” — ones which were used just a few days later to identify their mystery skull. More remains were found two months later, and the manner of death was determined to be homicide.
An investigation led police to a man named Nathan Gilmore from Osage, Iowa. Police believe the pair met at the county jail back in April of last year — and that he murdered her that very day after giving her a ride.
Gilmore has been charged with first degree murder. In the charging documents, police lay out their case. The 23-year-old apparently had sent a Snapchat message to a friend of an ex-girlfriend threatening he’d “be lookin like the body they found outside Mitchell boy.” He allegedly typed that the sound a person makes when stabbed in the neck “makes me hard.” He also asked:
“Wanna see a dead body?”
This was when only the skull had been found. The neck stabbing must have matched up with what the rest of the remains told them because police called in Gilmore for an interview last Friday, August 19. According to the charging docs, his story was inconsistent, changing twice:
“During the interview, Gilmore described being present in the park the day that the skull was discovered and stated that he spoke with law enforcement who were present at the scene.”
Returning to the scene of a crime? That really happens?? The doc continued:
“Gilmore provided an accurate description of the skull. Gilmore initially attributed his knowledge of the found remains to media reports and information around town but climbed [sic] that he did not know specific information about the remains, or about the woman who the remains were ultimately identified as being.”
Eventually, however, he told them about “picking up a woman near the Cerro Gordon County Jail” on April 6, 2021 while “at the jail for a court hearing.” Bradbury had apparently been there as well, having been arrested for trespassing. She was last seen leaving with an unknown man.
According to investigators, Gilmore admitted “he took her to a house in the southern part of Mason City” but claimed she “remained at the house” while he left for work in St. Ansgar — then he said he went home after work and didn’t return to the area. But once they knew what to look for, it was easy for detectives to fact check his story. The docs explain:
“GPS records obtained from Gilmore’s Facebook account showed that on the evening of April 6, 2021, Gilmore’s Facebook account was active in an area northwest of Greenbelt River Trail Park at approximately 7:21 pm and active in an area southeast of the Greenbelt River Trail Park at approximately 8:37 pm, before records show his account active back in the St. Angsar area.”
The Greenbelt River Trail Park area. Where the skull was found.
Police got a warrant to search Gilmore’s home and found a drawing of “a satanic goat’s head in the shape of a pentagram with what appeared to be blood spatters drawn on it.” Creepy!
Obviously being into satanic imagery, or even actually belonging to the Church of Satan or other organizations like it for that matter, is not evidence of wrongdoing. Plenty of very peaceful folks are into that stuff. But this isn’t Satanic Panic we’re talking about, not a West Memphis 3 situation. On the drawing was actual evidence. Per the report:
“Written on the drawing, next to the goat head, were the numbers ‘o4-06,’ ‘0590,’ and ‘43.3, -92.8.’”
Authorities didn’t have to try hard to decipher the numbers. “04-06” was the last date Angela Bradbury was seen. The latter numbers seemed “to coincide with an abbreviated GPS coordinate for Greenbelt River Trail Park.”
That plus the messages about the body? And lying to police about his alibi? It’s a lot of reason for police to believe Gilmore is their killer. Chilling stuff. See more on the case from local Des Moines affiliate KCCI (below):
Anyone with more information on the case can call the Mitchell County Sheriff’s Office at 641-732-4740.
[Image via Cerro Gordo County Sheriffs Office.]